Thiamphenicol in the treatment of male gonococcal urethritis: a study of 1,230 cases.

Thiamphenicol, an aminic derivative of hydrocarbilsulfonylpropandiol, was used for the treatment of acute, uncomplicated, gonococcal urethritis in 1,446 male patients. Each patient received one oral dose of 2.5 g of thiamphenicol, which was readministered after 48-72 hr if Neisseria gonorrhoeae continued to be present in urethral smears. Of the 1,446 patients treated, 1,230 patients underwent posttreatment evaluation at 48-72 hrs and at seven days. Twenty-eight patients (2.3%) did not respond to treatment; treatment was successful in 1,140 patients (92.7%) after only one dose, and in 62 (5.0%) after two doses. The overall rate of treatment success was 97.7%. Of 352 patients evaluated one month after treatment, serologic tests in 41 (12.6%) were positive for syphilis.